Our Story
It was September 8, 1919...
...when the Farmers State Bank of Hamel opened for business with a combined capital and surplus of $12,000 under a new charter from the State of Minnesota. Incorporators were L.C. and B. M. Dorweiler, A.A. Pickler, Mable Larson Roy, and H. F. Hughart.
H.J. Dorweiler became Cashier in April 1920 and served in various capacities including President, until his death in March of 1972. The general economic instability of the era slowed the progress of the Farmers State Bank of Hamel. However, the Bank Holiday of 1933 proved to be a turning point in our history. Farmer’s was authorized to reopen without a stock assessment, cut back, or loss to any depositor or stockholder. Steady progress has been noted ever since.
The Farmers State Bank of Hamel was only a few years old when H. J. Dorweiler parked his touring car outside our door. A new bank building was constructed in 1948 and an addition was completed in 1958. Electronic bank processing equipment was installed in the 1960’s. In fact, Farmers State Bank of Hamel was the first financial institution of our size in Minnesota to install such a system.
The major component of our bank’s success over the years has been and still is the dedication of staff members to the needs of our customers.